"And in those simple beautiful movements I remembered what was really important in training; that consistency trumps intensity; all the time. That intensity is born from consistency. That one cannot force it, one has to lay in wait for it, patiently, instinctively, calmly and be ready to grab it when Grace lays it down in front of you."

Monday, April 29, 2013

Great weekend in Seattle watching Tracy achieve her level 1 rank in Kettlbell Sport- 122 jerks and 198 snatches with the 12 kg. More than enough to push her forward into the 16 kg class! A short trip but usually more than enough to slow me down but today had a great workout instead. Glenn was back from work stuff last week and it was hot enough to actually sweat again, how cool! ( pun intended.)

Watching all that GS made me realize even more how much of a Hardstyle KB athlete I am. I want to use the kb to increase my power, strength speed and muscle development. Watching the gireviks move their body around the kettlebell instead of what we do: make the kb move around OUR body brought home the point even more than normal. Hardstyle kb training is as close to a cross between powerlifting, bodybuilding and sprinting as I am going to get and the weapon of choice for that has to be THE SWING.

Not the snatch. I've been in love with the snatch ever since I first discovered it and hung onto it's athleticism like grim death as all other forms of athletic endeavors disappeared for me. But I made a vow not to snatch over 24 kg in weight and I HATE high rep sets so I've decided to re focus my focus on SWINGs and not snatches.

I even think I am going back to max Vo2 training with the 16kg. Since I can't go heavy and I hate going long I might as well go light and fast. We'll see. For right now it's back to the swing and the press as the mainstay's of the program and here's hoping my press stays together. Either way though, the swing's the key.

I can train it heavy and hard and not worry so much about injury. I can do one arm, two hand, two kb and hand to hand,plenty of variety.It's a big mindset switch but I think it's time to let go of the snatch as the centerpiece. My shoulders will just never have that easy overhead position no matter what I do. They'll get better but the heavier slower snatches demand a strong overhead fixation and I just don't have it. It's easier in the press for me.

these were definitely in a loose style but that was alright. I just wanted to make sure my shoulder didn't de stabilize and the longer holds have, in the past, been problematic. these were good and the weight felt light. Haven't practiced much so I have some work to do there.

Belt squats32 kg x 25 x 3 x 30 x 1

nice pump! still love these.Very excited about this new direction. this will let me go much heavier and get much stronger than the other focus.

Friday, April 26, 2013

Going to Seattle tomorrow to support Tracy in her first KettlebellSport full biathlon competition and had to get the workout in today. Not quite recovered from Wednesdays two hand swing fest but I wanted to get something in. Decided to lighten it up and bit and it's a good thing as even light felt heavy :)) Sure sign I made the right decision.

Got a full stretchout early this am and felt pretty good all morning but just tired again when it came to train. No biggie just another day at the office. I would feel better leaving than coming in and I did,always do.

this looks better on the page than it felt. my hips are not feeling as square as they've been and I need to figure that out.this was just work.

One arm swings28 kg x 5/532 kg x 5/540 kg x 5/5

lol, that's crazy! what was I doing swinging the 40? especially jumping from the 32? i was in a rush and NEEDED to one arm that 40 kg at least but it was NOT smart. Thank goodness it went well but that was not a smart move.It wasn't that hard though, lol.

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Given how jacked up things have been the last two days I didn't imagine this workout. It's hot again here and although I love it, I'm not adjusted to it yet. Another solo day and just plain tired coming into a fasted workout. Nice combo.

But I was determined to just do a few heavy sets and be done with it. Kind of what I did but not how I planned. Got the right shoulder to stay in place and my left hip too. A nasty reminder of how my daily life was just a few years ago. I ain't plannin' on going back, that's for sure.

I did get a solid hour+ of stretchout in today and that helped a lot. As usual I need more of this not less.It always makes a positive difference and I have to remember the phrase that really started my entire re hab for real:" GET ON THE FLOOR".

Daily. As long as I do that and do whatever my body tells me needs working on that day I go in the right direction. Too much time on my ass in a chair and bad things happen. Just that simple. Just get down and on the floor and crawl around, roll around. sit around.

this was very tough today. had allusions of longer sets but this was it. tighter than normal on my right today. no surprise but not much fun

Sled dragssomething new: continuous walk. About 3/4 of the block out, stopping twice to catch breath, and then return. then another 200 ft. different than the shorter sets. interesting. no idea, really about distance but it was solid effort. Love this move now. forwards only for the near future.

Monday, April 22, 2013

Sometimes you just have to re boot the computer to get things settled down and running straight and most of the time you ( I) just have no idea why it works, just that it does. Had to do that with my training today and it came out of the blue, just like a laptop that develops a mind of its own.

After Saturday's solid training and an easy day Sunday( which included stretching although I could have done more) my right triceps started aching in the middle of the night and when I got up I realized my whole right side of the shoulder girdle was not happy. My first rib seemed out and nothing seemed to sit right.

It took me years to get out of that and I wasn't happy this morning. I figured it was the heavy one arm clubs( which have given me problems off and on forever) combined with everything else. Plus washing the car on Sunday with lots of circular reps,

A simple car wash shouldn't push me over any ledge but it may have, despite my not liking the idea of it. But any way here I was and it was not fun. Especially with a brand new client at 6 am and a lot of drills and skills to demo.

I got a solid 40 minutes of stretchout in but it wasn't enough. The back knobber found some nastiness in the rhomboids and that helped but it took awhile. When I got the gym my plan of heavy double swings and presses didn't seem like it would go.

But, I've been here before and more often than not just moving as I did before I was tweaked pushed "re-boot" and re sets my system. It eventually did I'm glad to so but it sure took it's time.

Plus not walking with any shoulder extension this morning shifted me in a weird way and my left knee starting talking to me- right after the shoulder shut up. Of course :)

looking at the work load now it doesn't look that bad. But until I got half way through the 24's everything felt awkward and uneven as my left knee didn't want to fully straighten on bend easily.
But then I started to feel better.

2 Kb press2 14's x 52 16' x 5 x 22 20's x 4 x 22 24's x 3 x 4 sets

these weren't perfect but each set felt better as well as my body. Strangely enough my tricep/ shoulder on the right felt " normal" It was my left knee/ hip that was weird.
Gettin' old ain't for quitters or sissies.Good news was, the weight felt light.Awkward, but light.

Belt squats48 kg x 20 x 5 sets

these helped reset the tension in the legs and my knee. each set things felt better. more tired but more square.

Bodyblade laterals3 x 10/10

wow that was a throwback to a place I don't want to go. I have forgotten how jacked up that right arm was for so long, and how much energy it takes to deal with it throughout the day. Glad things have changed.

Saturday, April 20, 2013

Solid workout this morning. Up early to fully stretch out as the backward sled pulls Wednesday did not agree with my left knee so I had some work to do on that leg as well as the right SI joint. Must have been a bit sideways from the knee. No worries. Still no NSAIDS in over two weeks, the first time in over 15 years or more that I haven't had to take one for my knee or back. Very very happy with that, let me tell you.

Just like the two hand swing every year I try to get off the one Alleve I take a day and every year I failed. Until this year.:) The fact that I can train the two hand swing, and bilaterally in general, let me know my ultimate training goal; to be 'square, plumb and neutral' is definitely on target. It's been a long haul; very long. but it's getting there, finally.

This alone makes everything worthwhile.

SO a good stretchout and power snatches on the menu. Want to alternate each ballistic move with it's 'dead stop'opposite each week and see how that works. They are actually stronger for me as my weak link is the back swing ( or 'the swing' as Tracy puts it) is tough. Reducing and then reversing heavy forces ain't no joke.

These were easy! and strong. No grip issues with left hand at all. this felt like a "regular" weight and NOT a top weight. Sweet! Glenn swung the Beast for easy sets of 5/5 for the first time and killed it!Nice.

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Had a surprising pr today in the two hand swing, 200 reps in sets of 20. Didn't expect that and it wasn't that hard. Pace was fast too with just Glenn and I going back to back pretty quickly. I needed to back off the weight ( never would have expected the 32 to be a 'back off' weight :)) and haven't done anything more than 10 reps in the two hand swing in forever. So i thought we would start and go to a 'comfortable stop' . 200 was very comfortable.

Decided to put these back in the routine as well. They are a really good move for me, much stronger than almost any KB movement. I stopped doing them when they were just aggravating my wonky left shoulder months ago but it's time to put them back in and push them more as well

2 CB Swipes2 10 s x 15 x 22 15 s x 12, 15

four easy sets just to get started. I will alternate the two cb version with the single bell two hand version. that should be fun with the 45 lber :)

here's some old video back in 2008 with a 35 lb club

Snatch holds18 kg x 30 sec x 40 sec x 50 sec

haven't gone light here either for awhile, these were strong on the left but right side was tight.

Sled drags 100 ft forward , 100 ft backward4 laps = 800 ft

going backwards was excellent but man are my quads weak! this should help tons. made me appreciate the forward drag way more

Monday, April 15, 2013

Man I woke up seriously sore this morning, finally in a good way, from those 40 pushups I did on Saturday. But everything else was fine,unbelievably. But it was slow going this afternoon when it was time for double swings. I knew I wanted to back down in weight a bit, that 44 kg one arm was pushing things, but how to do it?

I decided on weight ladders to make sure I at least touched the 24's but didn't spend the whole workout with them. Also, dropping down to light bells and going fast transfers very well to the heavier bells up the chain.

this was a shocker. I haven't done single cleans in LC for awhile as my shoulder just wouldn't stay stable. this felt easy, the limiting factor being how freakin' sore I was but the shoulder didnt make a sound and everything felt like the old days. on BOTH arms.Which may not have happened in years!

Saturday, April 13, 2013

Another great workout session and a great time with the crew. We also had a visit from an old friend Ken Black. Ken is one very strong dude and plays with heavy bells, stones, sledge hammers and tires for fun. He also competes GS when he feels like it and is one solid, around ironman and man in general.He's been in the RKC/ KB community since 2003 or so and still walks his talk. Here's his website http://www.theothersideofstrength.com/.
Supposedly he hasn't been training much but he played with the workout like it was nothing and finished off his 28 kg snatches with a set of 25/25 just for fun :))

I woke up feeling good and after another minimal stretchout ( very weird phenomenon here ) I had a very easy strong workout with the 24. Decided to stick with five rep sets and just do enough total sets to get some fatigue and that's what happend. But each set was stable and strong and fast reps. Happy.

back held up perfectly, as did the hands. A bit tender at the end but no rips or tears :) I much prefer to sets of 10 reps like the last set, that's for sure.
We were moving slowly because there were five of us and I knew it was swings or clubs so I chose swings.Smart move.

28 kg x 5/532 kg x 5/540 kg x 5/5/44 kg x 5/5 PR

Yes! No grip problem either. Very very happy with this. The Beast is closer than expected. So much fun to be able to play with some big bells again. Finally.

Bar pushups/ Scap pullups15, 13, 12 Pr 15 rep set!6,6,6

these are becoming less scap pulls and more towards just mid range pullups. Good but I am still so weak :) but the shoulder was fine.

the workout took awhile but it was great fun! breakfast afterwards as per the routine. I love my Saturdays:))

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Back to the basics and it doesn't get a whole lot more basic in the kb ballistic world than the two hand swing. The most important aspect of doing ballistic kb swings( cleans and snatches are swings too) is the acceleration of the bell. The weight is important but it secondary.

The swing is not a fast grind and it's import to be really able to move the weight quickly on the ascent, as well as drive it hard on the downswing as well. OR, if it's really heavy, not to slow it down on the descent.

Looking at this video I am pretty happy with the performance.This is a heavy bell for me for sets and reps and the bell moved much faster, on the ascent and descent than it felt like while I was doing it.:) Plus it came up higher.

It also didn't feel heavy in the hand, a good sign of strength. Groove was consistent and we did the most total swings we have done with this bell , 120 reps.

It's boring and very close to just digging a ditch , just pure grunt work; but it is vital for building deep and lasting strength and power, as well as putting on a good deal of real muscle as well.You gotta put in your reps.

It's also very cool that I could one arm swing this bell now :) very cool.

8-9 am Full stretchout.
solid one upper and lower in one session. a bit of crawling and floor rolling as well.Over head ROM continues to improve and shoulder achiness is diminished greatly as well. Note, I have added in coconut oil to the diet and already feel it's doing some good.A definitive anti inflammation response,especially noticeable because I am off all NSAIDS as well.

Another good sign that my training towards 'square, plumb, and neutral' is continuing in the right direction. Speed is nothing, trendline; everything.

Plan on adding ginger root to my morning green tea and tumeric somewhere in the diet. Joe is also putting together a chinese herbal solution for me to take for arthritis pain as well. Great to have a Doc in the crew, too :)

Two Hand swing16 kg x 1020 x 1022 x 10 ( misload :)24 x 1028 x 1032 x 1040 x 10 x 12 sets120 reps10,560 lbs - this seems to be my baseline load- 10,000 lbs. very solid place to push off of.Two KB Deadlift 2 16 x 8 2 20 x 62 24 x 51/28 + 1/32 x 5 off
this was off but not bad, had the 32 kg in the left hand which worked the left leg more. felt correct
2 36 x 3
awkward but strong/ this was an experiment and I don't think I'll keep it. The idea is to get my legs into it but I keep deadlifting from my hips and back, where I have leverage.,lol go figure.Since I'm thinking about more muscle as well perhaps double KB rows. That should be good:) I am seriously into double bell work these days.Oh yea, double snatches, forgot about those :)

Monday, April 08, 2013

Definitely a different mind set going into the gym thinking about going as heavy as I can that day and not about how many sets and reps I can do with a particular weight. Heavy hasn't been an option forever so the volume approach was perfect and may be again, but this is a nice break.

Definitely forces me to concentrate the mind better. Heavy always does. High reps and mucho sets do too but in a different way.5:30- 6 am half body stretchout
7:))- 7:30 other half :)

1 pmDouble swings2 14s x 10 x 22 16s x 10 x 22 20s x 8 x 22 24s x 8 x 22 28s x 6 x 8 x 9 x 10 !
these went very strongly although it's obvious they are not high enough but, hey, I'm happy. They felt strong and moved quickly. Got to lock the left elbow better and pack the shoulder more but again, I'm very happy. Now that Joe bought a Rogue 32 kg ( along with a 40 kg) I will think about working up to double 32's as well. Why not? Doesn't have to be perfect just done.

I have to master the 28's much better though before I even think about it. BUT double deadlifts are on the menu now for Wednesdays and that I can use them for. Of course I think Joe has other plans for them but we'll see :)

haven't done 10 rep sets with 24 in awhile. No problem and the nice slow ramp up was perfect. This will work I think I will do this each week and just vary the top sets reps ( upwards if desired) and the down set(s) Plenty of good, powerful snatches and a decent amount of volume. Minimal rest between sets as Joe and Nick were snatching the 36 kg! for sets of 3's ,lol. Not much rest at all.
My form felt good and the bell not too heavy. Strength first for awhile, conditioning later. Maybe :)

One arm swings28 kg x 5/532 kg x 5/536 kg x 5/540 kg x 5/5 Pr!

the first time I have done anything one armed with the 40kg and it was NO problem. the good news about doing it in this sequence is that I am fully ( finally) warmed up :)) Makes it a lot easier. One arm Beast swings here we come.

Two hand CB Shield casts20 x 10/1025 x 10/1035 x 8/8 !
these were the strongest shield casts I have done with the 35er.

CB Mills 3 sets of 10/10 with 10 lbs

haven't done these in ages, just showing Joe some of the techniques. It was fun, have to add them back in again.

Bar pushups SS Scap pullups4 sets of 13, 12 11, 10 ( Pr first set) 6 6 6 6 the pullups are getting better but the pushups were great. I should have gotten 15 on the first set but left a little in the tank. I want 20 reps here soon.
Not a bad improvement from August when I couldn't do one without pain.

a very solid day. weighing 158 in the am and body fat is as low as it's been so I'm happy with this. This is probably the perfect weight for me, light enough to be lean but heavy enough to still have some strength :))

Wednesday, April 03, 2013

Keeping with the theme of heavier, faster and more powerful I decided to do ladders on my swings, even though sets of 10 would have been no problem. I am really loving ladders of everything these days as " climbing to the to and then jumping down" is such a fatigue sparing mechanism that it lets me go heavier and keep the bell speed up even as I try to accumulate some decent volume.

I love how these numbers add up so fast. Energy was good. Things didn't start to even get a little tough until the last set of ladders. Just overall fatigue but speed stayed high.

Snatch holds16 kg x 30 sec20 kg x 35 sec24 kg x 35 sec20 kg x 45 sec

surprisingly tight today. oh yea, my shoulder did sublux a bit in the AM when I was working on hanging from the bar. I just can't let myself fully hang out or shoulder clunks weird. with a slightly bent arm and scaps retracted no problem but I guess I just don't have enough ligaments left in there :))

Farmers Walks2 16 kg bells x 200 ft x 4 rounds800 feet

Was tired and don't know if I trust this movement yet. tried it before and my back didn't like it but that was years ago. Felt ok but better less than more

Monday, April 01, 2013

This was a surprise. Just a few months ago I had hardly done any double bell swings except a few to demo at certs. Now they are one of my favorite movements and I hit a decent Pr today doing sets and reps with two 28 kg bells. Nice. Very nice.

Since re focusing my efforts on strength instead of conditioning ( nice also that I am back to being able to DO so, even just a little) my attitude has been has been better and bells that I had been thinking of as "heavy" now seem light. SO much depends on how you look at things. When I was a powerlifter, heavy didn't start til 400 lbs. Verymuch so in bench and hardly so in the squat and deadlift but any way at all up to 300 pounds IN VIRTUALLY ANY MOVEMENT just didn't seem heavy.

I may not have been able to do it but it just didn't scare me. After all the back injuries I seriously redefined heavy again but now I have un kinked myself just enough to be able to get into some bi lateral movements and play with something that resembles weight again. Not so much to hurt myself but to require some serious concentration.

I like to say if you're bored it's just not heavy enough or you would be scared, not bored. I've been plenty scared with 24 kg so sometimes that's heavy enough. The key is to have to really concentrate and now purposely keeping my reps low makes it SO much easier. I zone out and easily disassociate with even reps over 10 trying to 'flow' as much as possible and I don't like that. What I really like is the white hot intensity of having to do just ONE rep but while that no longer makes sense I still like the mental laser beam focus and concentration it produces and low reps with moderately heavy bells.

These went great and the twenty eights, with my new Rogue bell were strong and FUN! I can now see double 32's in the future as well. The 28's weren't that hard. I have tons of work to do with them AND the 24's before I go up but using the 28's will make me that much stronger for the base work with the 24's. That's how it works. I just wish I could do the same with the snatch but I can't so oh well :)

Not bad at all including the press. My right shoulder is now officially tighter again than my left, after all these months of left side issues,lol, and I felt the presses tugging more on my right hip than anything. BUT they groove felt solid and right. and no shoulder instability. I just haven't done many with any weight much less double 24's and I just didn't trust it.

But need to do lots more reps to get this thing and down and keep my assault on my overhead position. It already feels better of late. I might not do ANY single bell pressing for a while and focus on this and pushups.

I do need to do this move by itself though as well as in a long cycle or complex.Can feel some serious muscle about to come on :))

Single bell work will get done, eventually with left side getups and windmills and right arm press and snatch holds. that's next.